The US President Donald Trump said that the US should be paid for guarding the Strait of Hormuz from Iran.
He said this in an interview with Fox News, Reuters reports.
"We will guard the strait and probably run it. We will become its guardian. We may call ourselves the ʼguardian angelsʼ of the strait. And we should be paid for it," Trump said.
According to him, the US cannot perform this role for free because other countries using the route are "very rich" and support Washington.
"We will protect the strait. And we will get a lot of money for it. We should be compensated for these costs, because we cannot be expected to do it for free," the president said.
Trump also accused Iran of breaking the agreement. According to him, the agreement between the countries was completely ready, but Iran violated it.
"We have already made ten agreements with them, so now we will strike very hard," he said.
On Saturday, Iran reported the closure of the Strait of Hormuz after an incident with a vessel that Tehran said was moving without permission. The following day, Iranian authorities said that passage through the strait remained suspended and that shipping permits would only be issued after “stability and calm” had returned.
At the same time, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said that the only way to restore normal ship traffic is to stop US attacks in the strait. IRGC also warned that further actions by Washington could lead to new problems in the global oil and gas market.
- On June 18, the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding that committed them to a 60-day ceasefire. But since July 8, the sides have been exchanging blows again. First, Iran struck ships in the Strait of Hormuz, and the United States struck targets on Iranian territory. Despite this, according to ABC News sources, technical negotiations are ongoing.
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